Addressing the press for the first time since Delhi police said his wife had been murdered, Congress party politician Shashi Tharoor criticized the way the investigation in to the death of Sunanda Pushkar appeared to have been carried out so far. Read More »

The judge presiding over one of India’s most-watched criminal trials this year caused a stir – in part by convicting the parents of a teenage girl of murdering her – and in part for the language he used to do it.

From the arcane to the archaic, here are five words (and phrases) from the 210-page document that stuck out for Indian media, Twitterati and journalists here at India Real Time. Read More »

The trial of a couple accused of killing their daughter an domestic help gripped India and its guilty verdict left columnists here questioning the credibility of the justice system and investigating agencies.

The trial against seven men accused of participating in the murder of Christian nun and activist Valsa John Malamel in November is set to begin Tuesday, police said Monday.

According to several witnesses, on the night of Nov. 15, a mob of about 40 men armed with primitive weapons killed Sister Valsa at a house in the tribal village of Pachwara in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand where she worked as a social worker and as an activist. She focused on mobilizing villagers against the mining of coal in the area.

Reader response was strong to WSJ India’s five-part series on the life and death of Sister Valsa John Malamel, a Christian nun and activist working in rural India. Series reporters Krishna Pokharel and Paul Beckett answered reader questions on Feb. 7. Replay the event. Read More »

By Krishna Pokharel And Paul Beckett [The Wall Street Journal last week serialized an investigation into the death of Sister Valsa John Malamel. It is a tale of greed, lust, friendship, betrayal, faith, and brutality set against the conflict between two major forces shaping India’s future: Industrialization and the preservation of traditional ways of life. This account is based on dozens of interviews, witness statements, court documents, and police files. One chapter of the story ran each day last week on India Real Time and india.wsj.com. Today, we are publishing the story in full. Paul Beckett and Krishna Pokharel will host a live chat and answer your questions on the series at 8:30 pm India time, Tuesday, Feb. 7.]

The Wall Street Journal

“Where is Sister Valsa?” they demanded. “Where is Sister Valsa?”In the dark of night on Nov. 15, the mob surrounded the tiled-roof compound. They carried bows and arrows, spades, axes, iron rods.“I don’t have that information,” replied a woman who lived in the house, according to a statement she later gave to a local court.You’re lying, she was told.In one corner of a tiny windowless room off an inner courtyard, Valsa John Malamel, a Christian nun, hid under a blanket punching numbers into her cellphone.“Some men have surrounded my house and I am suspecting something foul,” she whispered to a journalist friend who lived several hours’ drive away.“Escape at any cost,” he says he told her. The call was logged at 10:30 p.m.Read More »

By Krishna Pokharel and Paul Beckett [Read Chapter One here, Chapter Two here, Chapter Three here, Chapter Four here]

The Wall Street Journal

Sister Valsa was buried in a public Christian cemetery in the town of Dumka, two hours’ drive from Pachwara. About 700 villagers, nuns and priests attended the funeral, including 30 nuns from her religious order, the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary. In a prayer at the funeral service, the congregation said: “We believe that she has returned to the Heavenly Father after completing her mission here on Earth.” A simple wooden cross is stuck in a large pile of reddish-brown soil that covers Sister Valsa’s coffin. Nowhere does the grave bear her name. This is the fifth and final chapter in the story of Sister Valsa by Wall Street Journal reporters Krishna Pokharel and Paul Beckett. The first chapter is here, the second here, the third hereand the fourth here. The Wall Street Journal compiled this account based on dozens of interviews, witness statements, court documents, and police files. It is running as a serialized story on India Real Time and india.wsj.com every day this week.Read More »

About India Real Time

India Real Time offers analysis and insights into the broad range of developments in business, markets, the economy, politics, culture, sports, and entertainment that take place every single day in the world’s largest democracy. Regular posts from Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires reporters around the country provide a unique take on the main stories in the news, shed light on what else mattered and why, and give global readers a snapshot of what Indians have been talking about all week. You can contact the editors at indiarealtime(at)wsj(dot)com.